sleepover storm
by niigoki
Summary: A horror story happens, followed by a storm. The girls are having a sleepover at the school and sometimes emotions surface at these occasions.
1. Chapter 1

When Taki-sensei announced that he would need some people to spend the night over at the school to help preparing for the Winter Festival, most of the students weren't that excited. It was cold and windy, and sleeping in the freezing music room didn't appeal to anyone. Only about seven people would be necessary, he assured; most things were already finished. He'd only need volunteers to sew the rest of the uniforms, clean the sheet holders and organize some important papers.

"I'll stay, sensei." Haruka, as the club's president, obviously volunteered immediately. She needed to be responsible and was sure that their maestro was counting on her to convince more people to join.

"I'm also willing to help," Kaori raised her hand and looked over at her friend with a smile. Haruka nodded back in return, her eyes taking on a thankful gleam.

"Leave the papers to me, then." For both girls' surprise, Asuka Tanaka also decided to help. For the most part, the shock came from the fact that the vice-president was the one who'd done most of the work for the Festival; it was like something was driving her to give 110% of what she had. Haruka and Kaori still had no idea what it was, though, but they were extremely happy to hear those words coming from Asuka's mouth.

"I'm staying too." Reina's decision wasn't so surprising to the rest of the band; she was always hardworking and wanted to make sure nothing got in the way of a good presentation.

"C-count me in as well!" To her own surprise, Kumiko raised her hand. If it'd been any other period of her life, she would never willingly stay over at school, much less sleep over. But ever since meeting Reina she'd been acting a little more against her will and for the sake of her dreams and future. Reina looked back at her and gave a knowing smile, making Kumiko's cheeks redden a little.

There were two people left to fill the spots, and no one else seemed to be up for it. That's when Kumiko turned around and gave an almost silent plea for her friends Hazuki and Midori, with full-on puppy eyes. Both girls flinched and tried to pretend not to see, but Kumiko slowly slid towards them, staring persistently. With a sigh, they slowly raised their hands as well.

"We'll stay…" They said in unison, sounding defeated. Kumiko tackled them in a hug, and Taki-sensei smiled.

"Well, it's settled then. Go home and pack your things for the night, I will settle the futons."

* * *

The seven band members were actually excited once they got to the music room at night. The school in the dark had such a different feel to it; it was almost like an adventure. They knew they had a job to do though; so exploring the school grounds was off question. Also, no one but Asuka seemed to be excited to walk alone in the corridors at that time.

"You're no fun," She said with a sly grin, while grabbing the papers to organize.

"There's no time for a courage test, we need to sew all of these onto our uniforms yet." Haruka refuted, pleased with herself for having an excuse. Kaori agreed with her and both girls sat down on the mattresses with a ton of clothes on their laps. All they had to do was to sew a last-minute brochure made by the second-years students on the uniforms' sleeves. It was a simple task, but with over fifty of them to fix in place it was going to take a while. "How are you guys holding up?"

"It's easy!" Hazuki answered with a piece of wet cloth in hand. The other four girls were left with the arduous task of cleaning the sheet holders. They weren't big, but sometimes they opened on accident causing someone's hand to get stuck on a painful pinch. So far Kumiko suffered four injuries on both hands, and she was beginning to want to throw them back in the warehouse.

"Stupid metal… umbrellas of pain…" Kumiko mumbled as she finished cleaning her sixth one. She caught a giggle by her side and looked over at Reina, who seemed to be doing just fine with those little monsters.

"It's better if you clean it from top to bottom," Reina said, placing one on the floor. "Here, let me show you." With both hands, she grabbed Kumiko's wrists and guided them slowly to match her movements. For a moment the brunette was hypnotized by the touch; Reina's hands flowed so incredibly well, like Taki-sensei's when he was conducting the orchestra. "Got it?"

Kumiko blinked. "Y-yeah, I'll try. Thanks, Reina." And with that, she resumed her task, a little too focused on the metal sheet at hand. Reina stood there frozen for a moment, then dropped her shoulders and grabbed another one to clean as well.

Midori raised and eyebrow and scooted close to Hazuki. "Nee, nee, Hazuki-chan. Doesn't Kumiko look a little out of it lately?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"I mean, she even volunteered to come here in the first place."

"And dragged us with her," Hazuki puffed her cheeks, still a little annoyed with it, but also in a jokingly matter.

"Still, she's been awfully distracted tonight, too." Midori turned back to Kumiko and Reina, who were now cleaning in silence. "She's not even talking with Kousaka-san either, I thought they were best friends."

Hazuki made a gasping sound and brought a hand up to her chest, offended. "I thought _we_ were her best friends! I feel betrayed!"

"Keep it down!" Midori's hand flew to Hazuki's mouth and both girls accidentally fell together on the mattress.

The rest of the night went by with nothing much happening. Asuka had tied her hair up in a ponytail, and this usually meant 'do not disturb', so her random comments also stopped coming. Haruka and Kaori sometimes muttered something amongst each other as they sewed, but nothing apparently worth sharing with the others. Hazuki, Midori, Reina and Kumiko were almost finished with the sheet holders as well, but the four of them were in complete silence for some awkward reason. Haruka and Kaori noticed that, but decided to leave it alone.

A few hours passed and they were all done. Kumiko stretched her backs on the floor, apparently returning to normal for a moment. "Aaah, I'm done! No more pain, no more distress!"

Hazuki and Midori also seemed dead tired, lying down on top of each other and pretending to sleep. Haruka and Kaori giggled at the scene, both also finished with the uniforms.

"They turned out quite nice." Kaori said, proud of their job.

"Thank you for your hard work, senpai." Reina smiled at her and received another smile in return. Ever since their little rivalry with the trumpet solo, Reina and Kaori seemed to have gotten closer, which made the third-year quite happy. She never wanted to hold a grudge against anyone, especially not someone as talented as Kousaka was.

"Since we're all done, you know what time it is?" Asuka got up and walked towards the group since she'd been sitting quite far apart from the others. Her hair was back to normal and she was rubbing one hand against another.

"I really hope you're going to say it's time to sleep." Haruka sighed, knowing very well it was far from it.

"Horror story time!" And seemingly out of nowhere, Asuka grabbed a candle and lit it, placing it in the middle of the circle that was formed. She also turned off the lights, and the room became really dark. All the other girls scooted closer to each other (except for Hazuki and Midori who were still passed out on the corner).

"Where did you even get that?" Haruka shrieked, the flames casting shadows on her.

"Irrelevant. Let's each tell a story and light up one candle for each story okay? Once we reach a hundred candles, we'll be able to safely evoke a friendly spirit!" Asuka was way too cheerful for someone who'd been working nonstop for weeks, and Kaori was beginning to worry their friend wasn't exactly sane anymore.

"…I'm pretty sure you're supposed to light up a hundred candles and blow them off with each story, not the other way around." Haruka said, a drop of sweat on her forehead.

"Wasn't there something about a mirror, as well?" Reina offered. Asuka blinked, confused, and stared at the candle with an intense focus.

"Modern times, modern measures." She said finally after a delay. Everyone just groaned, too tired to argue with their eccentric companion. "Since you all seem uninspired, I will begin! This is a real story that happened in this school eight years ago…"

"Asuka, it's two in the morning—" Kaori tried to put some sense into her head.

"One night!" It was useless. "A teacher by the name of Oowada-san had stayed over to grade her students' exams, since she was suffering from personal issues at home. The school was the only place quiet enough for her to work, and she was the only one left in the building. The sun was setting and it was getting dark, but Oowada-san didn't mind; the lights were turned on, so the teacher's office felt normal and safe, even if it was empty."

Reina felt something touch her shoulders and noticed it was Kumiko, trembling already. She chuckled softly, slowly grabbing the girl's hand to assure her it was okay. With a jump, Kumiko looked at her, as if realizing their proximity and straightened up, slowly sliding her hand away from Reina's grasp. The trumpeter frowned; it was already the second time Kumiko avoided Reina's touch and she was worried something was wrong.

"For a while everything was indeed okay," Asuka continued, her voice getting lower. "Until it started to rain. Oowada-san cursed, remembering she'd forgotten to bring her umbrella that day. Once the papers were graded, she would have to get back home probably soaked. Right then, it happened…"

Asuka got on her feet too quickly for anyone to process it. "A HUGE THUNDER CRASHED AND THE LIGHTS WENT OFF!"

Everyone yelped and huddled even closer together. Kaori and Haruka were basically forming one entity from their closeness, and Kumiko and Reina also hugged from the sudden yell. Asuka smirked, sitting back down.

"Of course Oowada-san got scared. Her heart was beating fast and she could hear the blood pumping in her ears. Tump-tump. Tump-tump."

"Mou, Asuka! That's enough already!" Kaori tried again, shaking as she grasped Haruka's shirt.

"But then, the teacher noticed something… The noise on her ears wasn't simply from her heart going crazy. There was something else, something getting louder and louder, a noise that matched with her heartbeat getting closer from behind. Oowada-san turned around, but it was too dark to see anything…" Asuka started crawling towards the girls. "Not wanting to die from panic in the dark, she grabbed a flashlight from under her desk, and hesitated before turning it on…"

Kumiko once again grabbed Reina's arm, this time completely ignoring any embarrassments from touching her. "D-d-don't turn it on!"

"Oh, but she did. And what she saw…" Asuka's eyes moved from Haruka, to Kaori, to Reina and Kumiko, gleaming with anticipation. "Was nothing. Just the other teachers' desks, empty."

All of them calmed down for a moment, dropping their shoulders. "That's it?" Kumiko asked, a little disappointed, but at the same time relieved.

"No. There was nothing where the flashlight was pointing, but…" Asuka once again got on her feet. "OOWADA-SAN FELT DROOL DRIPPING OVER HER SHOULDER AND A TONGUE MAKING ITS WAY DOWN HER NECK!"

The girls screamed again, the candlelight flickering in the dark. Haruka put a hand on her chest. "I can't take more of this…"

"Oowada-san disappeared that night. No one knows what happened to her until this day, and if you ask any of the teachers about it, they will avoid the subject. Just try it with Taki-sensei, you'll see." Sitting back down, Asuka bowed as she finished the story. It wasn't like she was expecting a round of applause but the utter silence made her feel somehow uncomfortable. "Come on, guys, it was just a stor—"

Suddenly a thunder exploded in the sky, making all of the girls, including Hazuki and Midori jump. There was stillness in the air, and then the sound of soft raindrops on the window. Kumiko was the first one to snap out of it.

"We're going to disappear!"

"No one is going to disappear, calm down." Reina sighed, getting up. Kumiko whined, having a hard time letting go of her; she keeping both arms hanging in the air as the trumpeter moved to the window. "It's just a normal rain."

"What happened? I fell asleep for a while." Hazuki yawned and rubbed her eye.

Haruka's heart was beating fast, but she had to get a grip as the club's president. "It's okay, we were about to go to sleep anyway. The sound of the rain can help us sleep better now," She tried sound confident, but her whole frame was shaking.

"T-that's right! Come one, everyone, let's put our pajamas and get some sleep." Kaori helped her out, grabbing her bag. Slowly, everyone started to move, taking off their uniform. Reina took a peak at Kumiko, a little disappointed by the fact that the brunette was with her backs turned. Now she was sure something was wrong, and it was probably her fault.

It didn't take long for the girls to get comfy under their futons, the candlelight still flickering dimly in the middle of the room. Asuka had decided to leave it until it burned itself out since no one particularly wanted to sleep in the dark after the story and the rain.

"Well, goodnight everyone. Good work today." Haruka managed, her voice raspy from the fear that was still settled in her. The others just mumbled a 'goodnight', except for Asuka, Kaori noticed. She wondered if the bespectacled girl was all right; she'd barely said anything after the thunder struck. A few moments passed and most of them were asleep.

Except for three of them, who had too much on their minds.

* * *

Kumiko just couldn't get to sleep, and the horror story wasn't the only reason for it. She'd been feeling light-headed since they arrived at the school to work for the Festival, and Reina was the entire reason for her doubts.

When she'd seen her volunteer, Kumiko's hand automatically went up and she still felt weird about that. It was such a reflex, she hadn't even thought about it to be honest. Wherever Reina went, she wanted to go too. This was her life now, following, chasing after Reina until she ran out of breath and _god_ , she never wanted to get tired. She didn't know what she was looking for, but somehow she expected Reina to lead her to it.

And now she was cursing herself for acting stupid the whole night. Kumiko _knew_ Reina, they were an essential part of each other's lives, so why was she so out of it? Was it because there were other people in the room with them? She never felt nervous around the trumpeter when it was just the two of them. But then again, she had only herself to blame for it, she even begged for Hazuki and Midori to come along. This was just dumb.

Her thoughts were interrupted by someone shifting in her futon and getting up. Gentle steps made their way to the room's door, sliding it silently to the side and then closing it again. Kumiko's eyes had already gotten used to the dark, so she could try to see who left. It didn't surprise her to noticed Reina's futon empty.

"Reina…" She whispered. Kumiko turned her body around and stared at the ceiling, one arm resting across her forehead. The rain hadn't stopped, but there were no more thunders around either. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, then opened them again and got up. Kumiko walked slowly towards the door, but stopped before opening it. The corridor was going to be dark, she assumed, and the thoughts of having a drooling monster right behind her made the hairs on her neck stand up. Her hand was frozen on the handle and she was extremely frustrated with that stupid fear.

"Go after her."

Kumiko flinched and turned around, searching for the source of the voice. She was surprised to see Asuka sitting up and smiling – it was a sad smile, she realized. "Don't let my dumb story stop you. Oowada-san never existed."

With these words of encouragement, Kumiko simply nodded and finally opened the door, leaving the room. Asuka followed her with a gaze and then looked over at Haruka and Kaori, who somehow had ended up in the same futon. Her smile vanished. "Don't make the same mistakes I did."

* * *

The corridor wasn't as dark as she expected, maybe because of the full moon. There were clouds in the sky covering it, but it still shone strong enough for Kumiko to see a silhouette at the end of the hall. She really hoped the person was Reina.

"Can't sleep, Monster-san?" She tried approaching the shadow, who looked at her.

"I just like the sound of the rain," Oh, good, it was Reina's voice. She was sitting in a gap near the window, her features shining through the moonlight. Kumiko's heart skipped a beat – how did she manage to be so beautiful all the time?

"Aren't you scared after the story?" Kumiko carefully sat down next to her, afraid of being too invasive. Then she mentally slapped herself for thinking Reina wouldn't want her near.

"Stories don't affect me. I won't let a fake fear get in the way of a beautiful melody." Reina turned her attention back at the drops on the window, scooting a bit closer to the brunette.

"That sounds like something you'd say," Kumiko giggled, relief washing over her. All of her anxieties regarding that night vanished, and she felt alive again just by being together with Reina. The two kept quiet for a bit, listening to the sounds of nature and watching as it poured.

"Nee," Then Reina broke the silence. "Are you angry at me?"

"Huh? N-no, of course not!" Of course she'd noticed Kumiko's odd behavior.

"Then… Did I do something wrong? You seemed to be avoiding me back there." Reina's voice was heartbreaking, as if she wanted to cry – but Reina never cried, only tears of victory.

"I wasn't… I…" Kumiko sighed, knowing that she had to explain herself. It was a hard task, though, since _she_ wasn't even sure what was going on. "I don't know why I was acting that way. I'm really sorry, Reina."

"It's alright. I was just worried I'd done something to upset you."

"You could never," Kumiko breathed in a chuckle. To make sure Reina understood that there was nothing wrong with _her_ particularly, Kumiko grabbed her hand. "I think I just feel… Awkward when it's you and me around other people. That doesn't even make sense, does it?"

Reina immediately intertwined their fingers and smiled a little. "Not really."

Kumiko grinned, glad to be able to be straightforward with Reina and receive an honest response back. "But there is something more to it, isn't there?" Reina pressed on with a knowing glare. Kumiko wouldn't be surprised if she were able to understand her problems better than herself.

"Um," She nodded, looking down. "I've been thinking, I guess. About my reaction when I volunteered to come here with you. I m-mean with everyone. The old me would never willingly spend the night at school, she would just think it wasn't worth it and that it didn't make a difference. That there were people better suited for it than her. But now I think I've changed a lot, and I think I realized it's all because of you."

"Is this a bad thing?" Reina asked.

"Not at all! It's very good, to change because of someone. But…" Kumiko fidgeted, not knowing how to express herself. She squeezed Reina's hand, a bit frustrated.

"But you want to change for yourself." The trumpeter concluded.

"Y-yes…" Kumiko raised her head, looking straight at Reina. "You are so strong-willed, Reina, and amazing and talented. You inspire me and try to make me a better person, and I am thankful for that. I just think I've been chasing you to try to become like you, when I should've been trying to become, well… a better me."

The raindrops started to subdue and the clouds made way for the moonlight to shine strongly over the school. Both girls stared at each other and could finally clearly see their features. Reina kept quiet for a while and then smiled, overjoyed. "I'm glad you're feeling this way."

"E-eh? I thought you'd be mad for some reason…" Kumiko sweat a little nervously.

"Why would I be? I just want you to be the best person you can be, Kumiko. And if I helped you realize that, then it makes me the happiest." Reina grabbed Kumiko's other hand, closing her eyes as she grinned. The brunette felt herself blush and dove into Reina's arms for a hug. It was just what felt right at that moment.

"Mou, you're shameless."

Reina wrapped her arms around her. "That's my line."

They stood there for a while until Kumiko could listen to Reina's heartbeat and realized it was beating quite fast. She got up, still holding onto the girl in front of her. "Reina? Are you okay?"

"I am. Why do you ask?" She answered, neutrally.

"W-well, your heart…"

This time it was Reina's turn to blush. "…I was just nervous, thinking I'd done something wrong." She then averted her eyes. "And I was happy when you came after me when I got up."

"Oh~?" Kumiko's sly smile was met with a poke on her ribs and a 'be quiet' from the trumpeter. They were pretty sure it was almost going to be morning soon, and if it weren't raining, Kumiko would ask Reina if she wanted to watch the sunrise together. Alas, nature didn't allow them this moment.

"It's getting cold here. Want to go back and try to catch some sleep?" Kumiko asked, not making much effort to get up. Reina was staring intently at her, she noticed. "Reina…?"

"Kumiko," She said with a different tone on her voice, one Kumiko didn't recognize.

"Huh?"

"Do you ever feel like changing your routine makes you want to do crazy things?"

Kumiko had no idea what Reina was talking about, but she felt herself being pulled towards her – like that time on the mountain, where Reina had first told her about her wish to become special. "…I suppose, yes."

"Would you do something crazy with me, just for tonight?" When Reina asked her like that, how could she possibly refuse? The mood had changed so quickly, but at the same time it felt natural.

"…Anything." Kumiko answered, somehow aware of what was going to happen next. Their faces had become too close suddenly, Reina's breath mixing with hers and eyes moving down at her lips. Time seemed to stop; a far away thunder boomed and echoed through the city, a few birds started to chirp as they woke up, one car drove down the school's street making a splashing noise with its tires, and the girls' mouths touched. Kumiko's eyes fluttered shut, just like Reina's, and their lips moved awkwardly, but in sync.

Bringing an arm up to Kumiko's neck, Reina took the lead on that very klutzy first kiss and gently bit the girl's bottom lip, urging her to open her mouth. Kumiko's face was catching fire, but she noticed Reina's desperate request and was happy to oblige. The trumpeter felt like her heart could burst out of her ribs at any time, but she'd wanted this for _so long_ , there was no way she'd stop now. When their tongues touched, Reina felt herself melting. Neither of them had any experience with it, but _dammit_ it felt good, and not because it was a kiss, but because they were kissing _each other_. Their tongues moved slowly, trying to grasp that first sensation, but were soon touching more often – somewhat this resembled how their own relationship worked, Kumiko thought.

They had to part for air, but after catching Reina's lustful gaze, Kumiko just brought her mouth back to kiss her more. They kissed two, three, four times that night, and she didn't know if kissing Reina was considered crazy at that point, but if it was, then she wanted to lose herself on that insanity.

* * *

Hello friends, I'm back with another Hibigay story! This one got so much longer than I intended, but I think it was necessary. Sometimes we forget the worth of delayed gratification.

Also, I felt like this story left too much in the open so I miiiiiight do another chapter? Maybe? Should I? I really don't know. If I did though, it would focus on Asuka, I suppose. What do you think?

I hope you enjoy it!

\- niigoki


	2. Chapter 2

After watching Kumiko leave the room, Asuka's eyes rested upon the sleeping figures of her two former best friends. Haruka and Kaori seemed so comfortable snuggling under that futon that Asuka almost felt nostalgic for a moment – those sleepless nights when the three of them would stay over at Kaori's house and listen to Dvořák's "From The New World" and other great symphonies for hours.

Those times were gone already and Asuka couldn't let herself dwell on memories of a forgotten past; she had decided to be strong, after all. She wanted to lie down back in bed and erase everything from her mind – thinking about all of those good times she'd spent with them was only making the pain come back. But for some reason she couldn't today. She didn't know if it was the rain falling or simply the fact that she was having a sleepover with Haruka and Kaori for the first time in years. Asuka had tried to mask her own anxiety with jokes and a stupid story she'd just made up along the way, but then it started to rain and her mood went downhill.

Asuka _hated_ the rain. More than anything. The weather just made her feel angry and empty, as if the clouds in the sky made their way into her mind as well and just turned everything gray and wet and cold. Whenever it rained she usually grabbed her euphonium and started playing a melancholic tune to try to vent, but right now, at almost four in the morning with a bunch of girls sleeping in the room, it was not a viable option. She was stuck in sadness and it sucked.

For a moment she thought about getting up as well and leaving, but she wanted to be considerate of Kumiko and Reina's alone time.

 _Yes, think about those two._

Diverging her mind to something else, Asuka managed a small smirk. Those girls were so in love with each other, but none of them apparently had noticed until now, which was fun to watch. She wondered what they were talking about in the corridors – maybe something about the band, or school, or the horror story she'd told earlier, or maybe…

 _Ruining their friendship._

Shaking her head violently, Asuka got up in a jump, her heart thumping violently. She had to grab a wall to balance herself from standing up so fast, feeling like she might fall. She hated when she started to feel like this, her throat seemed like it was going to close.

"Asuka…?" A quiet mumble came from under Kaori and Haruka's futon and she realized the former had apparently woken up with the sudden movement in the room.

 _Shit._

"H-hey," Asuka mentally cursed for stuttering. "Guess I had a nightmare with my own story, how stupid is that? Just go back to sleep, sorry for waking you."

Kaori didn't say anything for a while, still a bit dizzy from sleep. Then she noticed Haruka was basically hugging her like a teddy bear and blushed a little. "It's alright…" She rubbed one eye and shifted her position to be able to look at Asuka, careful not to wake Haruka up. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, don't worry!" Asuka sat down back on her futon with a smile. "We need our best strength for the festival, so just go back to—"

"You don't need to be strong all the time, you know."

Kaori's voice made Asuka freeze in her spot. Her mind went blank, trying, searching for some clever response, but finding none. Kaori always had this effect on her, both of them did. They've spent too much time together to know when someone was acting weird, and unfortunately Asuka's behavior was obviously off that night. Her heart started beating on her chest and she thanked every god above for being so dark since her face was tinged red by this point.

"I just want us to have a nice festival." It was everything Asuka could think of saying.

"I'm not talking about that," Kaori sighed, clearly trying to force her way in. "You've been strange for a while now. And I know asking you to talk to us isn't going to work, but I'm— _we_ are worried, Asuka."

Asuka was caught in her trap and she couldn't leave now. The raindrops were tickling the window as the room took on a heavy mood, the silence almost unbearable. She slowly made her way back to under the covers of the futon, shifting uncomfortably. "You worry too much."

"Do I?"

"Not really," She managed a broken smile, her stomach twisting. "I don't want to talk about it. It's late and we're going to wake up the others."

"I'm already awake," This time Haruka's sleepy voice spoke up. Kaori looked down to the girl in her arms, giving her space to move away, which she surprisingly didn't; Haruka just adjusted her position to also get to look at Asuka, but remained in Kaori's futon. "So we might as well get this over with. What's going on?"

Asuka just groaned. "You're so persistently annoying."

"You should be used to it by now." Haruka replied with a smile. She was still getting accustomed to her surroundings, but awake enough to confront Asuka's behavior.

"Indeed I should…" Asuka mumbled, closing her eyes. "You won't drop this, will you?"

"Nope." Both of them answered at the same time, which didn't help Asuka's situation. She was almost considering going crazy and telling them the things she'd been bottling up for years, but she wasn't that insane just yet.

"Fine. I'm exhausted." Plan B was lying, and she was pretty good at it. Well, at least she hoped to still be, even with her entire body shaking from head to toe. "I haven't been able to play the euphonium as well as I wanted for days because of the preparations, and I've been living off coffee and four hours of sleep a day. So yeah, I guess I'm a bit off."

Asuka tried to finish the sentence with a strong angry tone, hoping for them to get the hint that she didn't want to keep talking and just go to sleep. It seemed to work, seeing as Kaori and Haruka kept quiet for a few moments. The guilt on Asuka's stomach was already a familiar feeling, so it didn't bother her as much as it used to when she first started lying to her friends.

"Why can't you be honest with us, Asuka?" Kaori finally broke the silence, her voice annoyed. She was frowning and was so tired of this little game the black-haired girl played with them. "We used to share our problems with each other, the three of us. What happened to you that made you suddenly drift away? I've been asking myself this for so long now…"

Asuka's heart dropped – it hadn't worked.

"It feels like this is something you've been bearing all alone for much longer than just this week," Haruka agreed. "We want to give you your space, but we can't help but worry! We understand you think we only slow down your progress as a musician, but—"

"God, why do you bother so much?!" Asuka didn't want to yell, but her whisper came out a bit too loud. The constant love and care that Haruka and Kaori _still_ insisted on showing her just made her want to run away – but she was so tired of hiding; she felt the words leaving her mouth before she could stop them. "Just stop talking to me, stop caring about me, stop being such good people for one goddamn minute! Why do you have to make this so hard?"

The explosion rendered them speechless. A soft thunder crashed in the distance, apparently fueled by the sudden rage in Asuka's voice. Hazuki and Midori were absolutely passed out in their own futons not hearing a single thing; at least one good thing from this whole mess of a night.

"Asuka…" Kaori mumbled her name, but shushed up allowing for her friend to finish talking.

"I didn't drift apart because you were slowing me down," Asuka's voice caught on her throat. "I just couldn't focus anymore when we were together, and I am never explaining why, so just… Leave me alone. Please." With this, she turned her backs to the two girls, hoping to be able to shut them down.

Haruka and Kaori exchanged looks, shocked and saddened at the same time. They felt so helpless; seeing the strong and fun Asuka like this was new to both of them. Back then, the hard rehearsals were only bearable because Asuka always knew when and how to make them relax before returning to the piece. She'd always been helping them in her nonchalant way of doing things, and now Kaori and Haruka couldn't help her with this big secret of hers.

"…Alright. I'm sorry for pushing it." Haruka managed, after thinking for a bit. There was nothing they could do to break this shell, so they decided to give up.

"Goodnight, Asuka…" Kaori turned as well, trying to hold back the tears forming in her eyes. She had to be strong for the euphonium player right now; showing weakness would only make the burden heavier on her shoulders. Snuggling close to Haruka, both of them closed their eyes with heavy hearts.

Asuka started to sob on her futon, almost inaudibly, both hands covering her ears, trying to muffle that hellish sound of rain. She hated herself for lashing out at Haruka and Kaori. She hated herself for drifting apart from the two best friends she'd ever had. But she hated herself the most for the feelings she'd been forced to endure everyday for the past five years.

 _Why did I have to fall in love with both of them at the same time? What am I being punished for?_

* * *

Heavy breathings coming from two people fogged the cold glasses of the corridor, the change in temperature on the room suddenly very clear – so clear that Kumiko and Reina's pajamas somehow had been unbuttoned in the middle of the innumerous kisses they'd shared that night. Nothing else besides mouths touching had happened; their shirts being opened was simply because of how incredibly hot both of them were. Still, the girls couldn't help but to stare at each other's almost bare chests.

Reina was the first one to snap out of the trance. "I'm sorry." She said, bringing her hands up to button up her clothes. There was nothing much she could say, mostly because her mind was a jumble of sensations at the moment.

"M-me too," Kumiko replied, doing the same. She didn't know if she was apologizing for the kiss or for being the one who first motioned her hands to start undressing the girl in front of her. She had absolutely no idea what had gotten into her – was it the atmosphere of the situation? Or the fact that she was kissing Kousaka _Reina_? Maybe just a naughty side of her she didn't even know she had, and that was what made her feel the most embarrassed.

Both musicians finished tidying up their pajamas and tentatively stared at each other. Kumiko's face heated up the moment her eyes met Reina's and she decided she couldn't look at her directly, at least not right now. For the first time, Reina was lost for words regarding the situation. She wanted to say something, anything to break this awkwardness between them, but her head wasn't working. All she could think about was how she wanted Kumiko's lips to touch other parts of her (was this thought too inappropriate?).

"I got too carried away…!" Kumiko's voice surprised the trumpeter. "I d-definitely didn't mean to do anything t-this weird, I'm sorry Reina…"

Licking her lips, Reina breathed deeply. "Don't apologize. I'm the one who suggested it, I should be—"

"But I liked it!" Putting both hands over her mouth, Kumiko's eyes widened in shame. She hated how the words just spilled out with no warning whatsoever; one day she was convinced she would lose Reina because of that big mouth of hers.

With no words, Reina grabbed Kumiko's hands and put them on her lap, caressing the calluses on each finger made by the euphonium.

"It's alright, you can be honest with me," She said, staring attentively at Kumiko's hands. This calmed the brunette down a little; she actually _did_ want to be honest with her feelings for a change.

"I liked it," Kumiko took a deep breath, deciding to let it flow for once. "I think… I've been wanting this for a while. I mean, it's not like I've thought about kissing you before, but once we did I realized I wanted this? Does this make sense?"

Reina chuckled a bit. "Yes."

"Then my chest started to hurt, but not in a bad way, in a really good way and I didn't want to stop…" Kumiko gathered the courage to look at Reina's features. "And I think I'd like to… keep doing this? I mean, only if you want to, of course!"

The rain was starting to subdue now, the moon already almost disappeared in the sky. More birds had nested on the trees near the school to drink that morning dew and everything seemed peaceful.

"Kumiko." The muttering of a simple name.

"…Reina?" A careful question.

"Ku-mi-ko." The syllables punctuated with sweetness.

"Rei-na." The loving tone, matched.

The trumpeter lifted her head and stared at Kumiko's eyes for the first time. They were glossy, shining with raw emotion and expectancy, an expression she knew she wouldn't forget for a long time. With no warning, Reina brought herself forward to peck Kumiko's lips, lingering there a second too long, then pulling back. "I'd love to keep kissing you, too."

The brunette's heart leaped on her chest and she knew this was the happiest she'd ever felt in her entire life. "Thank you."

With the sun rising, they decided it would be best to go back to their room; none of them wanted to explain why their futons were empty. But before getting up, Kumiko had one more question.

"What does this make us?"

Reina simply grabbed her hand, helping her to get up. "A beautiful duet, I imagine."

Kumiko got up with her help and smiled. "You're beautiful indeed."

"Terrible," And with Reina's final statement, both of them sealed that night with another kiss, relieved for knowing there would be many more after that.

* * *

The next day went on as normally as it possibly could. Haruka reported everything to Taki-sensei and he was pleased to know things went smoothly and everything was ready for the festival. Asuka noticed how Reina and Kumiko were basically glued to each other for the whole day as well, and she smiled at that.

 _Guess they had a very good talk._

Then she stared at Haruka and Kaori and her smiled vanished. Her explosion last night was unnecessary and she was feeling completely guilty now; all she wanted to do was make amends. But she knew that whatever words she tried to exchange with them would just feel empty and insincere. She wondered if she'd lost them for real this time and a sad smile made its way to her lips.

"Good work everyone," Taki-sensei interrupted her thoughts. "As a thank you gift I'd like to treat you all to some sweets next time, how about that?"

"Taki-sensei knows how to please a girl!" Hazuki said with enthusiasm. All of them laughed at that, even Asuka, and thanked their teacher for the treat. Once he left, all of them were free to go back home for the day.

"Say, Kumiko, wanna go grab a lunch?" Hazuki asked with Midori by her side.

"Oh, I'm sorry guys, I need to head home or my mom is going to get mad." She apologized, not really wanting to go anywhere since she'd barely slept.

"Aw, that's a shame. Well, see you tomorrow then! You too, Kousaka-san." Bowing, Hazuki and Midori walked together to the restaurant. Kumiko felt someone poking her shoulder and turned around, facing Reina's gorgeous eyes.

"I'll walk with you to the station," She said, fingers brushing Kumiko's own.

"You better," The brunette replied with a smirk, making Reina's cheek redden. Then she turned to the third-year girls and waved. "Thank you for the hard work tonight senpai! Let's have a good festival tomorrow!"

"Same here," Kaori waved back and watched as the two girls left the school grounds. Then she faced Haruka and Asuka with a more serious expression. "Well… We should get going too."

"Um," Haruka nodded, side-glancing Asuka next to her. She wanted to say something, but nothing seemed appropriate – at the same time she was a little afraid of upsetting her friend even more. With that, Haruka started walking to join Kaori on their walk home.

"…Wait." Asuka stopped them. She couldn't allow this to go on.

Haruka and Kaori looked back, stunned. Asuka sighed.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you like I did," She shifted uncomfortably on her feet. "You were just trying to help and I lashed out like an idiot. I guess I dropped my frustrations on you, and that was unfair."

Kaori smiled – that responsible smile that made Asuka fall for her. "I guess I need to apologize too. It's not our place to be so invasive and push you to say things you don't want to."

Haruka nodded with a hand on her chest. "We care about you a lot Asuka, so we worry. But it's okay to not want to share certain things. Just know that we'll be here for you, no matter what happens."

And there it was, the compassion and kindness that made Asuka fall for Haruka. For a while she wondered if the hopeless crush she had on them had vanished, but there it was, stronger than ever. It was a burden she had to carry by herself and hope to one day be able to let go.

"Thank you, you two." She walked towards them and placed herself in the middle. For once she didn't want to think so much, so she just put both arms around their necks and smiled. "Okay, enough with the sap. We have a festival to attend, so let's get ready!"

"Ehhh?" Haruka and Kaori groaned, too tired to rehearse anything, but at the same time happy to have Asuka back. "Mou, do you ever tire?"

"I love you two." Asuka said, dragging them out of the school. It was the truth and she was glad to finally say it out loud, even if it was masked under a joking tone.

"We love you, too," And for her surprise, both of them answered in unison. With a faint blush, Asuka just grinned more and started recite the tempos and notes for tomorrow's song, allowing her heart to beat happily. Haruka and Kaori just complained as they were forced to follow her quick steps.

One day Asuka knew she would find happiness somewhere obtainable, so she decided to stop beating herself up so much. Those two girls might never become her lovers, but they would never cease to be her two best friends in the world.

* * *

And it's done. I'm sorry for the bittersweet ending with Asuka, but she strikes me as a really bittersweet character and I just couldn't bring myself to give her happiness *feels the tomatoes being thrown at me*

Hope you enjoyed this story! Comments and kudos always appreciated. (also I already have another Hibike fic in mind so stay tuned for that~)

\- niigoki


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